Numerous virtual and in-person events are being held in southern Maine to honor the civil rights icon.
Eric Russell
Staff Writer
Eric Russell has been a general assignment reporter at the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram since 2012 and has been a journalist in Maine since 2004. Because he doesn’t have a specific geographic or topical area to cover, Eric often is free to roam the state in pursuit of the most interesting stories, whether it’s tackling the big topic of the day or chasing ideas that fall just outside the boundaries of everyday news. His favorite assignments are ones where he can leave the office and meet with people in their homes or their workplaces to talk about their struggles and challenges – and sometimes their triumphs. Or to try and answer complicated questions. Eric grew up in Southern Maine, went to college at the University of Maine and worked in Bangor for eight years before joining the Press Herald. He lives in Brunswick with his wife, a school teacher, and two daughters.
New superintendent hired for Long Creek, Maine’s beleaguered youth prison
Lynne Allen comes to Maine from the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services. She succeeds Caroline Raymond, who resigned in September after a series of violent incidents at the South Portland facility.
Southern Maine hospitals inundated as COVID-19 patient numbers hit new high
The omicron variant continues to sweep through Maine and the country, leading to increased hospitalizations and disruptions of schools and businesses.
Front-line health care workers more strained than ever during omicron surge
Nearly two years after COVID-19 first hit Maine, the pandemic is putting an enormous burden on the state’s health care workers and system.
Portland developer’s change of plan opens doors for women who are homeless or in recovery
The housing complex is called Freedom Place, a name with two meanings, one of them quite personal to Kevin Bunker’s family.
Answers to commonly asked questions about the omicron variant
The highly transmissible variant has ushered in a new phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hospitalizations set record in Maine as omicron creates new hot spots for infections
The variant has spread first in coastal and more populous counties, driving up infection rates where they had been relatively low just three weeks ago, and experts predict cases soon will spike in every county.
Maine schools face ‘unfathomable challenges’ as omicron spreads
The Maine Department of Education reported Thursday that 4,946 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in school populations in the last 30 days.
Bonny Eagle district cancels classes as schools face growing pandemic pressures
It could be the first of many disruptions as schools try to navigate a return from winter break with the virus spreading rampantly throughout communities.
Students and teachers return from winter break facing uncertainty
New guidelines are aimed at keeping students in school during an anticipated omicron surge, while one district reported dozens of positive cases on Monday alone.